The Electoral Commission of Ghana has announced that a Parliamentary by-election will be held in the Ayawaso East Constituency on Tuesday, March 3, 2026.

The election has become necessary following the death of the area’s Member of Parliament, Hon. Mahama Naser Toure, which has left the seat vacant.

In a statement dated January 16, 2026, and signed by the EC’s Deputy Chairman for Operations, Samuel Tettey, the Commission explained how interested persons can contest the election. Nominations will be accepted at the EC’s Ayawaso East Municipal Office in North Ridge from Monday, February 9, to Wednesday, February 11, 2026. Submissions will be taken between 9:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m., and from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. each day.

Aspiring candidates can download nomination forms from the EC’s website, www.ec.gov.gh/forms, starting Friday, January 16, 2026. Completed forms must be submitted in four copies and can be presented by the candidate or by their proposer or seconder during the nomination period.

Each candidate must be supported by a proposer and a seconder who are registered voters in Ayawaso East, along with eighteen other registered voters from the constituency. Candidates are also required to submit two recent passport-size photographs with a red background.

A filing fee must be paid as part of the process. General candidates are to pay GH¢10,000, while female candidates and persons with disabilities will pay a reduced fee of GH¢7,500. The fee is non-refundable.

The EC said the by-election is being held in line with Article 112 (5) of the 1992 Constitution, which requires an election to be conducted when a parliamentary seat becomes vacant.

The Commission has called on the public to take note of the information as it works to ensure a free, fair, and transparent by-election.

Meanwhile, controversies surrounding the Kpandai parliamentary seat have received a reaction from the Supreme Court. On Tuesday, December 16, the Supreme Court ordered that the parliamentary rerun election in the area, scheduled for Tuesday, December 30, be suspended until further notice.

The legal team of New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary candidate Matthew Nyindam has also been directed by the Supreme Court to follow due process in serving the National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate, Daniel Nsala Wakpal. Meanwhile, Tuesday, January 13, 2026, has been set for the next hearing.

Weeks ago, the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Kpandai constituency, Mathew Nyindam, filed an application challenging the recent High Court ruling on the 2024 parliamentary elections in the area.

Earlier this year, the former Member of Parliament and NDC parliamentary candidate for Kpandai, Daniel Nsala Wakpal, submitted a petition to the Tamale High Court challenging the results of the 2024 parliamentary election in the constituency.

According to the petitioner, the Kpandai parliamentary election was marred by irregularities in the voting and collation processes. He argued that Pink Sheets from many polling stations were not accurate or consistent.

He stated: “The parliamentary election held in the Kpandai constituency on 7th December 2024 was not conducted in compliance with Regulations 39 of the Public Elections Regulations, 2020 (CI 127) and the principles laid down by Regulations 39, and that the said non-compliance affected the results of the elections.

“The declaration and publication of the parliamentary election results held in the Kpandai constituency on 7th December 2024 were not made in compliance with Regulations 43 of the Public Elections Regulations, 2020 (C.I 127) and the principles laid down by Regulations 43, and that the said non-compliance affected the entire results of the parliamentary elections in the Kpandai constituency.”

However, Mathew Nyindam has argued that “The Parliamentary Election Petition filed by the 1st Interested Party on 25th January 2025, in respect of the Parliamentary Election held at the Kpandai Constituency on 7th December 2024, was invalid and could not have properly invoked the jurisdiction of the High Court, Commercial Division, Tamale.”

This will be the second time the country has had a rerun of elections after the 2024 general polls. Ablekuma North had remained the only constituency in Ghana without a sitting MP due to unresolved disagreements over the outcome of the parliamentary vote.

In view of this, the Electoral Commission (EC) on Friday, July 11, held a rerun election in 19 polling stations in Ablekuma North to provide constituents with a representative. Ewurabena Aubynn polled 34,090 votes to beat the NPP’s Akua Afriyie, who secured 33,881 votes.

On December 10, 2024, three days after the national polls, the EC declared Ewurabena Aubynn of the NDC the winner of the Ablekuma North parliamentary seat, defeating the NPP’s Nana Akua Owusu Afriyieh.

However, the EC later revoked the announcement, revealing that results from 62 of the 281 polling stations had not been included in the initial collation.

Efforts to restart the collation in January 2025 were disrupted by multiple challenges. These included interruptions due to the submission of unverified Pink Sheets and a violent intrusion at the collation centre that heightened security concerns.

After extensive deliberations, the Electoral Commission in July announced that it would hold a rerun election because the 19 scanned polling station results used for the collation, though approved by agents of both political parties, were not verified by the presiding officers responsible for those polling stations.

The EC arrived at this decision after meeting with representatives of the NDC and the NPP on Tuesday, July 1.

Violence mars Ablekuma North rerun election

At the Odorkor Methodist 1 polling station in the Ablekuma North constituency, some individuals engaged in a fisticuff with police personnel. Additionally, a JoyNews journalist was slapped by an unknown individual.

Former Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture Development and MP for the Ewutu Senya East constituency, Hawa Koomson, was also assaulted by a group of men. A journalist with GH One Television, Banahene Agyekum, was also slapped by a police officer.

The Ghana Police Service has interdicted one of its officers who was caught on camera slapping GH One Television journalist Banahene Agyekum during the rerun election at Ablekuma North.

In line with internal disciplinary procedures, the officer has been referred to the Police Professional Standards Bureau (PPSB) for investigation and withdrawn from the ongoing election duty at Ablekuma North.

The police have assured the public that a thorough investigation will be conducted and that further updates will be communicated. It is unknown what exactly transpired between the reporter and a group of police officers that led to him being slapped.

The police officer’s action has been condemned by many, including the Mayor of Accra, Michael Kpakpo Allotey, who witnessed the incident.

Deputy Minister for Government Communications, Shamima Muslim, in reaction to the incident, commended the police for their swift action in reprimanding the officer and condemned the recent attacks against civilians and journalists during the Ablekuma North rerun election.

“What we are happy about is the swift action that the Ghana Police itself has taken in interdicting the officer in question,” she said.

“It is completely unwarranted. Government itself takes a very serious stance, especially on security agencies meting out unwarranted attacks on civilians under any circumstances,” she added.

President of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Albert Kwabena Dwumfuor, also condemned the attacks on journalists. Due to the chaos that erupted, Inspector General of Police Christian Tetteh Yohuno visited some polling stations in the constituency.

The Minority in Parliament has also condemned the violence that occurred during the just-ended Ablekuma North rerun election, accusing members of the ruling NDC of instigating the violent acts.

In a statement signed by Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin, the caucus said: “The most disturbing aspect of today’s violence is not just the brutality itself, but the deliberate endorsement and celebration of these attacks by senior government officials.

"For example, Dr. Hanna Louisa Bissiw, National Women’s Organiser of the NDC and CEO of the Minerals Development Fund, provided perhaps the most damaging response with her statement that ‘violence begets violence’ and her suggestion that the brutal attacks were somehow justified.”

“Even more shocking is the Facebook post by Malik Basintale, Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) and Deputy National Communications Officer of the NDC, who apparently celebrated the man who attacked Hon. Mavis Hawa Koomson with the disturbing declaration, ‘From today, I name him the Flying Python. He shall be in charge of the 5k Airforce!’ This grotesque celebration of violence against a former Member of Parliament represents a new low in Ghana’s political discourse,” the statement added.

The Minority also registered its displeasure with the conduct of the Ghana Police Service at the polling stations.

“The Ghana Police Service’s response raises serious questions about their preparedness and commitment to protecting our electoral process. Security personnel were overwhelmed by the perpetrators, failing to prevent these attacks on political figures, party agents, and journalists. More concerning are allegations surrounding Chief Superintendent Lumor Frederick Senanu and his potential role in facilitating these disruptions.”

The caucus stressed the need for increased protection for voters, electoral officers, journalists, and candidates, and called on the international community, civil society, and the media to closely monitor developments.